Thursday, February 28, 2013

Follow Up

Remember my bangga? The one with hardly any dent but left a suspicious hole? Well, I showed it to my neighbor who is a SOCO (scene of the crime operative, think CSI) doctor. Sayang, I wasn't able to show him the bangga earlier. He said that he could have swabbed the hole and sent it for testing (cue music, "Who are you, who, who, who, who...") but the 72hr window has lapsed. Here's the clincher, from what he saw, it does look like a bullet hole!

I still get the shivers every time I think of how close that bullet hole was to me. Yes, there was about 3, maybe 4 feet between us, but come on, that was still 4 feet closer than I would have liked. And I try to block out the many what ifs that run through my mind each time I think about the accident.

Jojo's theory was that the gun could have been inside the car, possibly on the floor, and the impact of the bangga set it off. And the driver could have hurried off because of the gun ban. Had I filed a complaint with the police, the investigation would have caused serious problems for him. Lucky for him, I was in an idiotic frame of mind.

I am now even more thankful that I got out of the accident just shaken but blessedly unhurt. But it scares me to think that such a minor vehicular accident (he just failed to stop in time when I stopped) could have resulted to so much worse, just because the driver had a gun in his possession. He was not a policeman, and he didn't look like a politiko who would think that it's part of the image to have a gun. He didn't look like somebody's bodyguard or hired driver/assistant. He looked like a regular maangas thirty-something guy. I am willing to bet owning a gun makes him feel slightly more powerful and seemingly intimidating. He was on the short side, you see, hence the need for something to provide the needed sindak factor.

I have never truly understood the need to own a gun, much less bring it with you on your day-to-day life (unless you are a policeman or a security guard, of course). In my opinion, a gun would never protect you from harm. It would just increase the likelihood of someone getting hurt or worse, killed.

So for you "responsible" gun owners out there, please take a moment and really think of what a gun can do to you, to your loved ones, to other people. Accidents always happen, but once a life is snuffed, that's it. And even if there wasn't any physical harm done, as in my case, you should be responsible enough and man up to whatever damage your gun may have caused. Responsibility does not mean running away from the scene and hiding like a scaredy cat. Oh, and also follow the law. It is election season. There is a total gun ban that should be implemented. The gun ban rule (or is it a law?) is mandatory. It is not a mere suggestion. If you are "responsible" enough to own a gun, be "responsible" enough to follow all the regulations/rules/laws governing it.

I know I've complained a couple of times about my life bordering on the boring side. Well, this incident certainly added some excitement. But I sincerely hope this is the first and last time I get somehow involved with bullets and guns and anything related to them.